Great site, the forums are excellent and full of knowledgable people ready to point those less mechanically minded (moi) in the right direction.

My only suggestion would be to try and increase the amount of stuff about actually riding bikes .. I guess it comes from the fact that most people on this site are in their 30's with families and don't have time to get out that often and are left tinkering in the garage whilst the latest addition crawls around their feet. Perhaps there could be a section on favourite trails, and some more meets, even if it's just to show off your pride and joy in the flesh and not actually get it muddy ...

I love my Thumbie T-Shirt !!

But most of all it's great to know that you're not the only person that walks past full sus bikes with your nose in the air with a feeling of superiority when you remember your first steel MTB and all the fun it gave you ...

only problem is that I dont work so much now , and I am spending too much money on bke bits .

Maybe we need 'retrobike anonymous'. My name is John and I haven't bought anything anodized for 3 weeks.

Hilts wrote:

My only suggestion would be to try and increase the amount of stuff about actually riding bikes .. I guess it comes from the fact that most people on this site are in their 30's with families and don't have time to get out that often and are left tinkering in the garage whilst the latest addition crawls around their feet. Perhaps there could be a section on favourite trails, and some more meets, even if it's just to show off your pride and joy in the flesh and not actually get it muddy ...

Good suggestion. There is a ride and meet forum, it just isn't used so much. There are a lot of people on this site who ride regualrly. Just not on their retro bikes !

Sometimes on the 'modern bike' forums I get the impression that a lot of people don't know where todays bikes have evolved from, or why. Or that it is possible to ride DH fast with no suspension or ride a jump on a standard bike frame without it snapping. Yeah 5" of good travel is great but its not a neccessity. Thats why I love retrobike. That and the pics of anodised parts

For what its worth, here's what I take from the site (aka: lunchtime waffle):

I love the random illustrations of diversity from a common root - it's a safe bet the majority of contributors are well over their 35th birthday, happy to agitate and share memories of the good times, when our lives and lusts were simpler... As many have said, now we have varying amounts of disposable income and are able to magically purchase (or re-purchase!) that period, it's as if we take insult in subsequent bike design 'progress' and the tastes of the new people they are aimed at.

I guess it's all about the pieces of our identity - wanting to restate the fact that our values were somehow right then and are still right today - grudgingly, perhaps, in the face of some admirable technological advances. Let's face it, the old school bits and bobs we love to 're-find' now were all part of the dawning of the technological age way back when. That's why we love those flawed designs that were always bound to go CRACK! Hence, we are all therefore guilty of starting today's full suspension, 20" travel, hyperspace tubed, behemoths - just by dribbling over the local bike shop window!

Where to now for 'Retrobike' - I think it's already has iconic brand status, albeit in a cult or niche way. It's exactly at this point that it could go horribly 'wrong' or fantastically 'right' - depending on whether you prefer to hide under a little stone or like to spread the word and share with more folk. Neither is wrong.

It would be great though, to be able to make younger riders more aware of the heritage we all cherish - I really like looking at the US MTB Hall of Fame and First Flight stuff and wonder, since we in the UK are supposed to have all the history and heritage, why we cannot do something similar? With the knowledge displayed regularly by the group, it wouldn't be hard to compile an archive or the seminal UK moments: races, bikes, importers etc.

How positive would it be to define and state what the Retrobike is about for people yet to hear about it - perhaps to build logical activities (other than the web-based - it seems such a contradiction to be passionate about this outdoor pursuit, yet spend so much time staring into a radioactive screen thinking about it! Is that what computers are all about - big Gameboys invisibily replacing your desire to do the real thing with a surrogate - called EBAY!) that reach out to the next generation of old school riders.

Lastly, inspired by your great merchandise and the BOTM competition - how about publishing an annual set of readers' Top Trumps cards for each year's entries???

It'd be great to have some articles maybe. The forums are great but a well-written piece about something could add something extra. An interview with Mike Newton/ David Baker/ Tim Gould etc.. a hunt for a Cleland, try and track down anyone who ever used a browning front shifter - all these would be great.

Personally I love this site, it's got the right mix of niche and diversity (a diverse niche, is that an oximoron?), the right mix of people from around the world and is fresh and new almost everyday! I think this alone will ensure that it doesn't go the way of so many 'specialist' bike web sites that become tired and unused after a year or two (well there is only so much you can say about Fat Chance bikes or Yetis on a brand dedicated website!).
The other great thing is that no one takes themselves seriously, there's not a single person on this website who doesn't realise that collecting retro bikes is a daft extravagence and that there are better, more important things to spend money on in this world, but because of that fact everyone on here is lighthearted, fun, friendly, insightful and interesting without a single 'head up arse' amongst us (STW, are you listening-we're talking about bikes not life or death!). There's no egos (and with some of the bike collections on here some people could be justified in having them), there's no 'dick waving', if someone posts a bike up on here it's for the benefit and enjoyment of others and not to satisfy a 'look at me' complex of the owner.

In short, the site is spot on, let it naturally evolve slowly and let's have that evolution driven by the members, that way we'll be celebrating the 2nd, 3rd and 4th birthdays in style!

Its good to see its still going good and strong after a year, I do find it is addictive and I am spending more time on here than ebay for a change and I can't wait to see a gallery where we can add vintage/retro bike images cos that would really be cool .

In all I love it here, its great to find like-minded people who are just in it to revive those long forgotton classic bikes where mountain biking started.

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